Woodworking: Setting Up and Using Jointers & Planers

Once your jointer knives become dull they’ll need to be sharpened and replaced. When installing the new knives, they need to be set so they’re parallel to the outfeed table, and are all set at a consistent height. No fancy equipment is required for this; the work can be done with a good quality straight edge. We’ll show you how.

Since we’ll be setting the table using test cuts, we’ll start this session by providing you with proper jointer safety techniques. Next, you’ll learn how to perfectly set the outfeed table to eliminate snipe from your cuts, and how to calibrate the infeed table so you know exactly how much material is being removed with each pass.

If you want square edges on your jointed material, you’ve got to have the fence set square. We’ll start the set-up process by using a common shop tool, and double check the results by making cuts. Choice of material used for the test cuts is critical; we’ll walk you through the best choices for this.

You’ll get the best possible cuts on your jointer by feeding your material in the right direction, based on grain direction. In this session, you’ll learn to read the grain. We’ll also cover proper safety and techniques that should be used for:

• Wide pieces

• Narrow pieces

• Face jointing

• Cutting rabbets

• Jointing tapers

In order to get the most out of your planer it’s important to understand how it works, and how it differs from jointer. You’ll learn how to determine the shortest piece of material you can safely plane, how to clean the feed rollers, and general machine maintenance.

Changing knives on a benchtop planer is fairly simple, but there are tricks that will make it go better for you. There are typically A LOT of bolts holding the knives in place. You’ll see a shortcut for removing and reinstalling the bolts. When new knives go in you need to make certain there’s no debris that will interfere with the knives doing their work. Proper cleaning is critical.

You won’t get flat faces on your work if the infeed and outfeed tables aren’t correctly set. Leveling these tables to the planer main table is key to good quality work. It can easily be done using standard items in your shop, but it’s imperative that it’s done correctly. You’ll learn how.

Now that your planing is cutting cleanly and precisely, let’s look at specific planer techniques. In this final session, you’ll learn how to:

• Establish the proper depth for a first planer pass

• Eliminate snipe

• Use the planer for edge jointing narrow pieces

• Plane extremely thin stock